The first of 22 meetings, a friendly between the two teams, ended in a draw at the Stadio Nazionale del PNF (National Fascist Party Stadium), Cliff Bastin cancelling out Giovanni Ferrari's fourth-minute opener. "50,000 spectators, Mussolini in crowd cheering," ran the standfirst in the next day's Observer.

"England won well, but Italy was by no means four goals the inferior side," reported the Manchester Guardian, Stan Mortensen and Tom Finney delivering masterclasses and goals one and two respectively, with Stanley Matthews rounding off England's biggest ever win against the Azzurri.

The second group game for the pair at Euro 80, Marco Tardelli scoring the only goal with 11 minutes left. Uefa recalls it thus: "Giancarlo Antognoni gave the ball to Claudio Gentile out on the left, Phil Neal mistimed his tackle, Francesco Graziani brushed him aside and put in a low cross which Tardelli drilled in from close range."

The third-place play-off at Italia 90 gave Totò Schillaci one more platform to steal the show at the tournament, scoring a winner from the spot with four minutes left after David Platt had cancelled out Roberto Baggio's opener, when he'd picked the pocket of Peter Shilton.

Ah, Le Tournoi. Ian Wright, from a stunning Paul Scholes through-ball, and Scholes with a rather tidy finish himself, scored the goals, setting England on the way to a title they would secure after beating Franceand losing to Brazil.

"This result means an awful lot for English football. If we are capable of coming to a place like this and in a game of this nature, and getting the desired result when all the pressures are on you, and everything is conspiring against you, then it shows that you are capable of doing it when it comes to the finals next summer." So said … Roy Hodgson, then a member of Glenn Hoddle's staff for the World Cup qualifier that sealed England's place in France. It had seemed a long way off from the February defeat for Hoddle's side at Wembley after a Gianfranco Zola goal.